The Ring
by thelightsandbuzz
Summary: Will plans to propose to Layla, and everything was supposed to go smoothly. Couple in his superhero friends and his perfect plan goes down the drain. Will the ring ever make it to Layla?  Will/Layla, Zack/Magenta, Warren/OC, Ethan/OC. 5-chapter story. Complete!
1. The Ring and its Friends

**The Ring**

Disclaimer: Sky High (2005) is property of Disney, I own no such things.

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><p>This short story is part of my story-verse started off with another fic called 'The Mixed Tape'. There's no need to read that one to be able to understand this story but I would love it anyways if you guys choose to read that one too. This was just a plot-bunny in my head that had to be written down so I hope you enjoy!<p>

Characters: Will/Layla, Josie/Steve, Warren/Mia (OC), Zack/Magenta, Ethan/Gabriela (OC)

Genre: Romance, Humour, Action/Adventure, Friendship

Enjoy!

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><p>"Here it is," Josie Stronghold gushed at her son as she came back to their dinner table with a small velvet box in her hands.<p>

Will had just told his parents that he planned on getting a ring for Layla so that he could propose soon. Both Steve and Josie, of course, were ecstatic, and upon hearing about Will's intentions to acquire a ring they figured that he should be given a family keepsake instead; Grandma Stronghold's engagement ring.

Josie opened the box to reveal a silver ring with a square shaped emerald surrounded by tiny diamonds glittering against the overhead lighting.

"Wow, " Will breathed out.

"You just have to get it resized in order to fit Layla," Steve said as he grinned at his son. "You do know her ring size do you?"

Will thought about it for a moment, "It should be the same as her shoe size right?"

Josie laughed at his comment and hugged her grown-up son close to her, wondering where all the time had gone by.

* * *

><p>"Hello?" A curt voice replied from the other end of the call.<p>

Will held his cell phone to his ear as he flew around Downtown Maxville during his morning rounds, "Warren? Are you in Maxville? Or in the country at all?"

"In Chicago, but I'm coming back this afternoon, why?"

"I need you to do something important for me, can we meet when you get here?" Will asked as he landed on one building's roof.

"Why do you sound so strange? Has something happened?" Warren asked, noting his friend's tone.

Will laughed nervously, "No, nothing bad, something good actually, but I'll tell you when I see you."

"Alright Stronghold I'll see you later," Warren responded and Will grinned.

10 hours later and the two men sat at a bar drinking shots of whiskey, while Will told his best friend about his plans.

Will showed Warren the ring, "I got it resized this afternoon so it's all set."

"And when are you planning on asking her?" Warren asked as he set down his empty glass on the counter.

"Maxville Centre is hosting their botanical garden show on Monday, so I'm going to take her there to propose."

"How fitting, and matches with the green ring too."

Will laughed, "I know, when mom and dad showed me the ring I was so surprised. Do you think Layla will like it?"

Warren opened his mouth to answer but Will cut him off with another question.

"Or do you think she'll even say yes?" Will asked, laughter gone on his face to be replaced with a look of horror at the thought of Layla saying no.

Warren shook his head at his friend, "I'm sure she'll say yes, you've been together for almost 6 years, she probably already knows you have a mind to ask her about marriage soon enough."

Will's morale was increased at his words and he smiled, "I hope so…Anyways will you do me a favour and keep the ring until Monday?"

"What? Why?" Warren surprisingly asked.

"Because I'm either going to lose it, or worse, Layla will find it."

"You're not going to lose it and Layla won't find it," Warren reassured Will but he only shook his head.

"No I'll feel more at ease if you have it, please?"

After a few more seconds of begging, Warren relented.

"Okay, but if I lose this thing I won't be held accountable alright?"

"You won't lose it."

"Whatever you say Stronghold."

* * *

><p>"Hello?" A female voice responded from the other end of the line the next morning.<p>

Warren stopped at a red light, and adjusted his Bluetooth earpiece, "Mia? Are you in the city?"

"Yeah, I got back a couple of days ago, but was called in for a local mission last night, where are you?" she asked.

"Can we meet for coffee? Taylor's Café?"

"Sure, I'll see you in a bit."

A half an hour later, Warren stood up from his chair at the café as he spotted his girlfriend Mia walk through the door, and looked around for him. When she saw Warren she smiled widely and quickly walked towards him. Enveloping her in a hug, Warren kissed her and gave a grin as they sat down.

"How was Chicago?" Mia asked as she sipped her coffee.

Warren shrugged, "Villain was caught by a policeman, I wasn't even needed."

"Wow, what a waste."

Warren looked at Mia over his own cup of coffee and noted her slight tan from her week in Africa, but otherwise he was glad that she didn't have any injuries or scars left over from her missions, just as she had many times before.

"So what's up with you?" Mia asked lightheartedly and Warren took out the small velvet box that housed Will's engagement ring for Layla. He slid the box across the table and Mia opened it.

Her eyes widened dramatically as she saw the gorgeous ring, "Oooh this is pretty," she commented, looking up at him with a teasing look in her eyes that Warren didn't notice immediately. "But love, don't you think we're a little too young to get married?" she asked in a delicate tone.

Warren almost choked on the coffee he was drinking and spluttered out, "No, no, that's not…I mean, it's for...no-"

Mia only laughed at his reaction and raised her eyebrow, "Relax Warren, I know this is Will's, I was just messing with you," she grinned and Warren couldn't help but crack a smile at her.

"You're impossible," he said but the slight smile on his face never left him and Mia's eyes sparkled with humour. "So how did you find out?"

"Zack told us, he went with Will to get this resized yesterday," she responded, gesturing to the tiny box in her hand.

"Us?"

Mia laughed, "Yeah, he told me right after he left Will, and then Magenta, then Ethan and his girlfriend Gabby."

"Not Layla I hope," Warren muttered, shaking his head.

"No, thank goodness he can keep his mouth shut enough not to tell Layla, although it helps that he's been avoiding her ever since," she said, taking a bite out of a croissant and wiping her fingers on a napkin. "So why are you giving me this again?" she held up the box as she asked him and he looked at her closely.

"I need you to keep it until Will needs it," Warren said in a gentle voice, hoping that his slight pleading look would work on her.

"Excuse me?" Mia asked incredulously. "Will asked you to keep it didn't he? You're supposed to be the best man, and keeping the ring is supposed to be the best man's job."

"Correction, the best man is supposed to keep the _wedding rings_, not the engagement ring," Warren pointed out but Mia only rolled her eyes at him.

"Well the two are completely related so I guess it'll be your job," Mia retorted as she slid the box across the table back to Warren.

Warren grasped the tiny box and looked at his girlfriend pleadingly, "Mia please, I'm only going to lose this, you have to help me out here."

"And you don't think I'll lose it? I won't be the one to ruin a happy occasion for our friends."

Warren gave her a smile in hope of changing her mind, "But you're good at safekeeping, remember that case with the Department supplies you had to keep for me when we were up north?"

Mia rubbed her temples in exasperation, "Warren I lost those supplies remember?"

"Oh."

"Yeah."

A moment of silence, then Warren tried again, "Just…keep it for me Mia, please, I'll owe you a big one."

Mia looked at him, and was reeled in by _that_ particular look of his, and in the end she relented. The two left the café, and Warren kissed her deeply in gratitude and Mia laughingly shook her head as she linked her hand through his.

"Okay, but if I do lose this, I won't be held responsible okay?"

"You won't lose it, just…keep it somewhere safe at home."

"Well come on then, let's get this baby home. When is Will planning to pop the question anyways?"

"Next Monday at the botanical garden show," Warren replied and Mia 'awwed', he turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

"That's so sweet, that's her most favourite event of the year," she said in a happy voice. "It's so romantic of Will to have thought of that."

Warren looked down at her, "And why are you so surprised?"

Mia poked his side playfully, "Because just like you, Will rarely shows that he has some ounce of romance in his blood."

"I resent that," Warren simply replied. "I thought you found me romantic."

"Whatever you say Peace," she patted his stomach teasingly as they walked towards his car.

* * *

><p>"There's an unidentified aircraft coming straight Downtown, call in one of the available heroes," Zack ordered and one of the interns nodded and entered a few codes on the database.<p>

Magenta sat a few computer monitors away from Zack, and noticed abnormal activity on the streets downtown as well, "Civilians in disarray on Red Boulevard near Trent, it looks like a car is on fire."

"Is there anyone available?" Zack called out again.

"We've managed to contact Flare, and he's on the scene, Lady Force is also on the move," the intern replied through the intercom.

"I'm getting a couple of video feeds from the satellite and the rovers," Magenta called and soon a bird's eye-view of the downtown area was seen on their monitors, as well as a roaming video feed that showed what was happening at ground level.

"Where's Warren and Lia?" Zack said as he sat down beside Magenta.

Magenta entered something on the computer and soon two blue dots appeared on the screen, following the heroes' movements.

They watched as the car on fire was hurled through the air and through a brick building, missing the two heroes by inches. They spotted the villain, about to escape towards a helicopter that landed on the park about 100 metres away.

"Come on Warren," Zack muttered as they watched transfixed as Warren hurled fireball after fireball at the villain, with the fire snaking around him. But in the next second another villain appeared from the side, who was being fought off by Mia's force fields. The villain she was fighting seemed to have water powers as he doused the surrounding fire with a sweep of his hands. Both villains rushed towards the helicopter and the two heroes still trailed after them, battling against them as they ran.

Warren tackled the first villain on the grass a few feet away from the helicopter, while Mia grabbed on to the other villain's neck as he stepped on the helicopter platform. She enveloped them in a forcefield, but another villain inside the helicopter fired a laser gun at her and her hold on the other slackened as her right arm was hit. When the forcefield around them disappeared Mia punched the villain on the face, and he in turn, grabbed her left side roughly and tore her utility belt in the process. With two villains against her, the helicopter rose from the ground and as Mia sent another attack, a fist collided with her jaw and a pair of arms threw her over the side of the helicopter.

"No!" Magenta yelled as she stood up on her seat, horror on her face as she saw her friend freefall down to the ground.

But then in the last second, they saw Mia hold out her hands and a blue circular flat forcefield appeared in front of her, and she directed it down to her feet. She then looked as if she surfed down ever so gently towards the grass down below. Magenta sighed with relief as they watched their progress on the screen, she leaned against Zack who put an arm around her comfortably.

An alarm beeped overhead, signaling the request for a cleanup crew and medics, and Magenta and Zack decided to go with the crew towards the scene of the crime to see their friends.

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><p>"Stay still so I can heal your arm," Warren said strictly to Mia as she tried to stand up, they were inside one of vans sent over by the Hero Centre, as the cleanup crew were tending to other civilian's wounds and damages to the area.<p>

"We have to get them Warren, we have to," she replied through gritted teeth, as she watched the villain that Warren managed to apprehend being led away by one of the crew members. She saw Zack and Magenta heading towards them and she stood up abruptly, only to be yanked back down to her seat by Warren.

"How's your arm?" Magenta asked concernedly.

"Feels much better now," Mia replied as Warren let her arm go, revealing pinkish skin on her forearm, as if her laser burn had a chance to re-generate over many days. "What did you find out about those villains?" she turned to Zack.

"I was just talking to that dude Warren knocked out, he seems out of it still but he said something about the Bank Heist group," Zack said as he crossed his arms across his chest and leaned back on the wall.

Mia stood up and stretched her arms, and rubbed her newly healed jaw which was cracked by her villain, "Well we have to go and find them or else we'll all be in trouble."

"What do you mean?" Warren asked worriedly.

"That jerk who punched me grabbed me on the side and split my utility belt before they threw me overboard, the belt is still in that helicopter, with them," she said as she walked towards the other van that held their prisoner.

"What's so important about the belt?" Magenta asked as the others walked alongside her.

Mia turned around and an apologetic look crossed her features.

"Will and Layla's engagement ring was in that belt."

"Crap."

* * *

><p>"So I got us tickets for the botanical show next Monday," Will said to Layla as they sat down on a bench at the park, eating from Chinese take-out boxes, despite Will's preference for anything but Chinese food.<p>

"Oh that's great! I'm so excited," Layla replied. "Is anyone else going? Or are they all busy?"

Will shrugged, "Not so sure, Ethan and Gabby might go, they got a week off after their assignment at Capital City."

"I hope the others can make it, it's so much fun going there with you guys, just like old times," Layla smiled.

He laughed as he remembered their trip there the year before, "Yeah, like when Zack knocked down the whole orchids row and security kicked him out."

Layla laughed along, "Yup, good times."

"Layla?" Will asked as he looked at some kids playing on the merry-go-round.

"Hmm?"

"If you could pick anywhere in the world to live in permanently, would you choose Maxville?"

Layla looked at her boyfriend for a moment and pondered about it, "Umm… Yeah, I think I would choose Maxville, it's familiar and it's a great place. Why do you ask?"

Will looked back at her and gave a small smile, "Well, you know, we've been getting all these missions where we have to go cross country and even out of the country, and I was just wondering if you ended up liking one of those places better than here."

She shook her head, "I mean, some of those places are definitely breathtaking, but they'll never feel like home to me you know? How about you?"

Will nodded in reply, "I feel the same, and besides, Sky High is here, and you know I really like running those summer mentorship programs they have now."

"I think this is the first time we've ever discussed our futures," Layla noted. "It's a breath of fresh air don't you think? Compared to our talks about risky and depressing missions?"

"Definitely," Will replied as he wrapped an arm around Layla affectionately, thinking about how in just 5 days he would get a chance to ask Layla to marry him. Layla took his hand in her own and Will noted her bare ring finger, smiling as he imagined a particular emerald silver ring nesting comfortably on it.

**TBC**

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><p>AN. This will be a two-chapter story so stay tuned for it. Hope you guys liked it and if you do please review and tell me your thoughts. :)


	2. The Ring and the Mission

**Chapter 2- The Ring and the Mission**

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><p>"What?" A surprised Will exclaimed at his two friends after they had just told him about certain unfortunate events. He sat down weakly on his seat, still staring at the two in slight horror.<p>

Warren and Mia stood in Will's office with nervous looks on their faces as they watched their friend's face change expressions in the next seconds. Warren sighed and slumped down on the seat across Will's desk.

"I'm sorry Will, but I promise we'll get it back, it's just a matter of getting those villains before Monday," he said and Will nodded slowly.

"Okay," Will replied, finally calming down enough to wrap his head around the situation. "What can I do to help?"

Warren shook his head no, "You're on vacation Will, you don't have to help, _this_ is our fault so it'll be our responsibility."

"Are you sure?" Will asked uncertainly, and looked at Mia who sat at the arm of his couch, looking at the two men apprehensively. "What if you need to be sent abroad Mia-"

"No," Mia reassured him. "I already told Director Anderson about the case and he said we can run a team from this centre, we'll be set once we choose the heroes."

"Don't worry too much about it Stronghold," Warren said as he saw the worried look cross Will's face again. "It'll be like hitting two birds with one stone, we get your ring back, and we get to catch the Bank Heist group."

"That group has been on the Watch List for some time now though, they have activities across the state," Will said, looking at some data on the mission folder Warren showed him when they first came in.

"You let us worry about that," Warren replied, getting up. "Just enjoy your vacation with Layla alright?"

Will stood up with him, "Alright, alright, but don't hesitate to call if you need help."

He walked the two towards the elevator, and after hugging Mia, went back to his office, thinking about their predicament, and his sincere hope that his friends would be successful on their mission.

* * *

><p>"Do you remember Jerry the Carbon Copy Kid?" Zack said as he introduced Jerry to the group. The team was assembled in a small private room inside the hero centre, sitting properly around the round table waiting to hear and present their plan of action.<p>

"I just go by Carbon Copy now," Jerry chuckled as he sat down.

"Alright," Warren started as they all assembled in the meeting room. "We've been approved for an undercover mission. We have a contact who's a trusted reformed villain with connections to the Bank Heist group. They don't know that he's on our side now so Jerry will take his form in order to gain access to their headquarters. I will accompany him as a bodyguard and as soon as we're inside we'll gather up as much info as we can on their dealings. Now we know that the group's members are combined super villains and civilian criminals but the non-supers are still well equipped with the highest rated weapons available. So as always, we attack to capture or decapitate but be careful not to kill, especially the normies because we don't want as much government intervention."

Mia stood up to activate the maps and the slides, starting up the presentation of their mission plan.

"Okay guys, here are our main targets," a picture of three men came up on the screen. "The directors of the group, two supers and one normie, they're all based in this ship, which is now docked at Maxville harbor."

The ship was vast, with its own two helicopter pads, which the satellite picture captured the day before. Lia narrowed her eyes at the helicopter pictured on one of the landing pads; it was the one where she had last left the ring.

She continued, "The rest of us are on reconnaissance duty- Zack, Magenta, you two will monitor the immediate area around the ship, we've obtained a small yacht that will be discreet among the other boats on the harbour. Ethan, Gabby, you're in charge with our weapons and when we get you close enough, Gabby can try to deactivate the shield on their ship. You two will get the patrol ship that we borrowed from city hall; the captain is a friend of ours so he'll be able to hide you two on board. Larry and I will fly the helicopter that Jerry and Warren will be in, but only they can go inside, we'll be asked to stay behind on the deck, just outside the headquarters' shields."

"This is going to be a short mission, we'll gather up the files, get past their shield and attack, there's really no room for second chances," Warren said as he looked around at the others.

The others looked back at him and Mia with eager faces, letting each other know that they were ready.

"Let's do this!" Zack exclaimed toughly and the rest of them cheered.

"Zack, Maj, Ethan and Gabby, meet me at the harbour at 7am sharp and I'll show you to your ships. I'll ride back here to meet the rest of you guys up on the rooftop where our helicopter will be waiting at 7:15," Lia went on as she stood up with the others.

"Okay, Jerry you're coming with us to meet Fred Falcon, that way you can get a sense of what he's like and be able to copy him better. He'll also be giving you a few lessons on the guys were dealing with," Warren said to Jerry who nodded and got up with the others.

"Right-o, I've only got the rest of the afternoon and the evening so let's get this over with," he said as he rubbed his hands together excitedly.

The rest of them left the room, dividing up into groups to prepare. Warren and Mia went with Jerry to the garage, where they took Warren's car to their accomplice's home in the suburbs.

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><p>"I know that we're on vacation and all but it's a little strange that they seem like they don't really want our help."<p>

Will chuckled nervously, "Yeah, well, who knows what goes on in their minds. Maybe they're just being very nice and don't want to bother us at all."

Layla shrugged, "I went out to eat with Maj last night and met up with Lia on the way. Something was off with the both of them, just...strange. And I haven't seen any of the guys for a while, ever since Warren came back from Chicago. Do you think they're hiding something from me?"

Will forced a laugh but he came up short, instead he stammered out, "I don't think so, they're probably just busy. You know Ethan just finished that techie project with Gabby and Zack is always working at the control centre."

"And Warren? Isn't he supposed to have a break after his mission?"

"Well," Will started, racking his brains for any excuses. "He said he was leading the mission with Mia, so maybe he just couldn't say no to working with her. You know how he is when it comes to Mia, he doesn't get the chance to work with her a lot."

"Hmm...I guess," Layla sighed. "I just feel so out of the loop you know, all of our friends get to work together and we're here relaxing."

"It's fine Layla," Will reassured her. "They'll be fine. And we'll try to have a good week off just like they want for us."

"Okay," Layla said as she stood up. "What are our plans for tomorrow then?"

Will grinned and gave Layla a small kiss. He knew his friends would kill him for this.

"We're going to the beach near the harbourfront."

"Ooohh, that sounds fun."

**TBC**

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><p><strong>AN: Ahoy there! Just a tiny change in this story, it will now be a 5 chapter story instead of the 2 chapter I had originally planned (hold for applause), I just couldn't see everything being squeezed into only 2 chaps. Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this update. Thanks for the reviews I received and any other comments would be welcome as well. Cheers! :)**


	3. The Ring and the Villains

**Chapter 3- The Ring and the Villains**

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><p>"How does Jerry look?" Zack asked.<p>

"Perfect, exact copy of Fred," Mia grinned.

She helped Zack and Magenta load up their supplies on the small yacht, and after she helped to untie the line that held the boat in place, Mia watched as the two drifted away, waving goodbye to her.

"Testing, this is Ring Leader 1, are all communications functioning?" Mia said out loud, adjusting the small communication link device on her ear.

"Copy that, this is Ring 1 testing for a signal," Magenta's voice came from the other end of the comm-link and Mia pressed a button on her utility belt, sending a warning signal to see if Magenta would get it.

"All clear. Over and out Ring Leader."

Static, and then came the sound of Zack's voice over the comm.

"Ring 2 testing for a signal."

Mia did the same thing for Zack, and when she was finished, she headed back to a spot away from the docks towards the place where she parked her vehicle.

Taking out her borrowed keys, she turned on Warren's bike and its engines roared to life. Mia sped off down the street to head over the docks on the west side, where she was to meet Ethan and Gabby.

Spotting them on the patrol ship already loading their equipment, she waved at them and they smiled back at her.

"Zack and Magenta all set?" Ethan asked.

"Yup, they're all good."

Gabby walked over to them, "Hey Lia, captain says he wants to talk to you."

"Okay, I hope he doesn't change his mind," Mia said as she walked up the ramp and the stairs to the captain's cabin.

"Hi Harry," Mia said as she walked up to him, Harry stood up to give her a hug. "Please tell me you're not backing out."

He laughed and shook his head, "Me? Never. I'm no super but I always liked fights," he finished as he grinned cheekily.

Mia smiled back at him, "Okay good, so you have the route we've given right? Ethan and Gabby will brief you in what's going on once we get inside."

"Right, you better be extra careful alright? Your boyfriend might get angry again," he joked and Mia rolled her eyes at him.

"Well considering he's on this mission too, I'd guess he's able to keep calm when I'm being too reckless, I hope," Mia laughed and turned to leave.

"Where's your friend Layla? She still with her boyfriend?" he asked curiously and Mia turned back to him with a raised eyebrow.

"If you're planning on asking her out tough luck, she's practically engaged."

Harry looked crestfallen but still with humor in his eyes, "Oh damn, first you break up with me after one date and now I can't even ask your friends out? How about your purple haired friend?" he asked hopefully.

"Sorry player-boy, she has a boyfriend too."

"Damn."

"How about I set you up with another of my friends if one of them is desperate?" she joked and Harry's eyes sparkled.

"If you do that I'll gladly help you with other missions," he laughed.

"That probably won't be necessary," she said simply. "Later lover-boy."

Heading out after speaking to Ethan and Gabby, Mia did the same routine testing on their communications and finally headed down to Maxville Hero Centre. Speeding down the highway back on the motorcycle, she turned sharply to her right where the entrance to the parking garage was. She expertly stopped mere inches away and in front of a person who was busy looking at some files on his phone.

Turning off the bike's engine, Mia climbed down and took off her helmet. Shaking her hair out of its messy ponytail, she grabbed on to Warren's arm and started walking with him towards the elevators.

"Ready?" he asked as he looked down at her.

Mia smiled in reply, "Ready as I'll ever be."

When the two got off at the rooftop level, they saw Jerry morphed into Fred Falcon and Larry by the helicopter.

"Hey guys, should I start it up?" Larry called from the pilot's station.

"Yes, go ahead," Warren called out as he climbed on to the passenger cabin.

Mia gave him a swift kiss on the cheek before she made her way to the co-pilot seat.

"It's show time," came her parting words and Warren's mouth twitched into a small smile.

When the helicopter began to rise, the group started off their mission.

Warren's voice came on their headsets, "This is Ring Leader 2, calling all units, we're about 10 minutes from our destination."

"Ring Leader 1, here on standby, make sure to page me while Leader 2 and Ring 5 are inside their shields, communications might be tapped into until Ring 4 can disable the shields," Mia's voice rang out and the rest of them confirmed their status.

"Ring 1, standing by, pier-side, sailing in a few minutes," came Magenta's voice

"Ring 2 standing by, ditto," Zack's response and the others grinned.

"Ring 3, standing by, on the move around the perimeter," came Ethan's voice.

"Ring 4, standing by, 200 meters until I can get to their shielding system," Gabby said.

"Ring 5, standing by," Jerry called out from beside Warren.

"Ring 6, standing by," Larry said, winking at Mia beside him, who laughed.

"Alright guys, we'll talk to you in a few, be careful out there," Mia replied to all her colleagues and she turned down her comm-link.

"Do you think I'll get to transform today?" Larry asked conversationally.

"I hope not, but we can never tell," Mia replied. "I know you like turning into a two ton rock but you also do a lot of damage."

"Best part of the job," Larry grinned and Mia couldn't help but join in.

* * *

><p>Spotting the not-so-welcoming ship, Larry and Mia flew down towards the vacant helicopter landing pad. Two men in black suits came out from the stairs while the passengers prepared to walk down. Larry cut the engines, and Lia descended down the helicopter stairs after Warren and Jerry.<p>

Jerry moved forward with Warren close behind him to meet the guards.

"Mr. Falcon sir," the guard greeted him, standing stick straight, with his suit opened slightly enough to reveal his shoulder holster with weapons strapped onto it. "Mr. Grant, Neilsen, and Larson are waiting for you in the lounge."

"Well let's not keep them waiting then," Jerry said as they walked along. "I'll leave my pilots here to accompany your other guards, they look quite lonely don't they?" he grinned jokingly and the guard with them turned to the other guards at the small station beside the helicopter pads. He nodded at them and turned to leave with the guests.

At his nod Lia saw from a distance that one of the guards on the small station entered some codes on the computer screen. She heard a slight hiss of energy as she figured the invisible shield around them had just been reactivated.

* * *

><p>Warren followed closely behind Jerry as they followed the guard down to the lounge, where the leaders were waiting to talk business with Jerry, who they thought was the rich and powerful mogul Fred Falcon.<p>

The double doors were opened and they walked in, seeing three men seated at a conference table.

"Ah Mr. Falcon, so glad that you can make it today," the youngest looking of them stood up and shook hands with Jerry.

"Grant, good to see you again," Jerry said lightheartedly, having been briefed on by the real Fred about his previous interactions with the group.

"Shall we get started on the proposal?" One of the leaders, Larson, started up the overhead with the presentation after they were all sat down and ready. The Bank Heist Group was only a name given to a larger crime syndicate run by the three leaders in the room, and they hoped to get on Fred Falcon's good side so that he can invest on to their 'business'.

Warren sat down and observed as Jerry played his part well, and subtly looked around in the large lounge. Guards lined the walls as if they were protecting vaults all over the place, and as Warren listened to the conversation between the leaders and Jerry, he heard them inform Jerry that a number of their staff were meta-humans, meaning they had superpowers that they can use to expand their business furthermore.

"Even with all your super-powered men, I heard that you still had a little trouble with the authorities the day before yesterday," Jerry commented, sounding smug to intimidate the leaders, who looked at each other nervously.

Warren smirked to himself, and waited for one of them to make some sort of excuse to redeem their business in front of their potential investor. The leader Grant, who possessed superpowers, cleared his throat.

"It was a minor setback I assure you, and we did manage to succeed our plan despite the loss of one of our own to those superheroes," Grant smiled reassuringly. "And besides, it allowed me to do a little research about superheroes, you see my men managed to get their hands on a super's equipment, it was quite fascinating."

And he took out a black utility belt to showcase in front of Jerry and Warren, smirking as he did so.

"We've been studying some of the weapons we've found in here and my researchers have already found ways to counter them, rendering the weapons useless when used against us. Now I wouldn't call that such a failure would I?" he finished, still smirking.

Jerry clapped shortly, showing them that he was quite impressed, and the leaders went on talking about their future plans. Warren on the other hand looked at the utility belt in the corner of his eye, thinking about a certain object inside the belt that he had to get back soon.

When the meeting ended about an hour later, Warren looked at his watch to see that they had exactly 10 minutes before Gabriela attempts to deactivate the ship's shield-which meant that Warren and Jerry had to find their computer mainframe to get all the data of the plans they have already shared with Jerry, which they would need as concrete evidence against them in the courts. Jerry knew this as well and he moved forward to ask the leaders for a tour of the ship, starting with their base. They complied, and as they entered the main control room, Warren looked at his watch again, ready for some action in just a few minutes.

* * *

><p>"A little early for the beach don't you think?" Layla asked her boyfriend as she dropped her beach bag on the backseat of his car and settled herself on the front seat with him.<p>

"The earlier we are, the better spot," Will said as the two drove down the highway towards the lakeshore.

When they reached their destination, Will carried all of their belongings easily, and the two were met with an empty beach.

"This is kind of romantic don't you think? It's just the two of us here," Layla pointed out with a smile, Will plopped down on his beach chair next to Layla and kissed her in reply.

"This is probably the only thing I like about vacations," Will muttered and Layla grinned.

The two stayed in their spot for a little while, waiting for the sun to shine even more brightly and heat up the water a little bit so they can swim. At half past 11, the beach was filled with people of all ages, and Will and Layla went to the water for a swim. They walked along the length of the beach afterwards, hand in hand. When they reached the boardwalk and the diving docks, they sat on a bench overlooking the vast lake and Will put on his sunglasses. Layla looked at him and a small smile graced her lips as she knew instantly what Will was up to.

"See anything?" Layla asked in a playful tone, Will looked at her surprisingly.

"What?" he asked. "See what?" He finished and Layla tapped the side of his sunglasses laughingly.

"You really think I wouldn't recognize those glasses? I have them too you know," she replied with an eyebrow raised.

Will sighed in defeat and grinned sheepishly at his girlfriend, "Oh well, I thought I could pull it off."

Layla laughed, the sunglasses were spy technology, with a built in camera and video feed for communication, but what was useful in their case for the moment were the long distance binoculars built into the lenses. Will turned back towards the lake and focused on his search.

"I see the patrol ship just to the west, that's where Ethan and Gabby must be in," Will muttered as he kept scanning the lake, the big ship shouldn't be too far off. "There, I see it. It's a big white ship, looks almost as large as a cruise ship."

He turned back to Layla and she asked him, "How do you know where Ethan and Gabby are stationed? Do you know where everyone else is too?"

"Well..." Will replied in a guilty tone. "I did peek in their mission file last night, Zack hasn't changed his passcodes from last week."

Layla shook her head and laughed, "If he finds out he's going to blind you."

"Ah, well, at least we have some idea what's going on," he said as he shrugged. "You're not mad at me are you? I'm slowly ruining our day off."

Layla kissed him on the cheek and held on to his arm, "This is definitely not what you call ruining a day," she smiled. "Now let me see if I can tap one of their comm-link signals, Magenta's is always wired into mine securely, I might hear the others through hers."

She whipped out her earpiece from her bag and grinned mischievously at Will, who only laughed and kissed her before they both got to work.

**TBC**

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><p><strong>AN: Hope you guys liked this latest installment, consider it an end of summer present from me, especially to those of you going back to school this week (or are already in school for that matter). Since I'm going back to school in a couple of days, I can't promise a quick update. And since I like alternating story updates between my stories-in-progress, 'The Mixed Tape' will be next and then this one again. **

**Thank you to those who have reviewed , and I would love to read more comments because they make my day :D **

**Cheers!**


	4. The Ring Found

**Chapter 4- The Ring Found**

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><p>"Shields are down!" came Gabby's joyous tone on their links. "We're coming over in a bit."<p>

Mia turned around to see the guards at the station furiously inputting codes on their monitor, but with no luck.

"I'm sending you two the teleporting codes now, they should work with the shields down. Just wait for our signal, it won't be long," Mia commanded over their comm-links as she and Larry walked over to the guards.

Sound of static came on their comm-links, and then came Warren's voice, "The three heads just found out their shields are gone and they're headed to the generator room. We're at the main bay, and Jerry's loading up their encoded files on our hard drive, he's almost done."

"Are you alone? We're just about to take down the guards," Mia replied.

"Yeah, we took down a couple of guards, but most are too busy about the shielding system. Grant said some of his enemies are thinking about sending some missiles if they find this place," he replied, and Mia could just imagine the smirk on his face.

"He sounds very loved doesn't he?" she joked. She kept their communications open as she and Larry reached the guards.

Larry waved at them and Dwayne, the guard they had been talking to before, stood up from his seat.

"What's wrong?" Larry asked concernedly.

Dwayne shook his head, "Just a failure on our shielding system, we're trying to get it back up. Sorry guys, but it looks like we're on lockdown for now," he finished.

Larry shrugged and stepped forward as Mia followed suit.

"We're sorry too guys," she started as the four other guards looked at the two of them, rising from their seats. "Sorry for breaking your shields."

A split second of silence, and the guards charged at the two once they realized what she must have meant. Mia raised a hand to stop them but they only smirked and took out their guns. As they fired their guns a force field materialized just in front of Mia's outstretched hand, and shielded them from the bullets. One of the guards with superpowers transformed into a mountain lion and charged at the force field but he recoiled back in pain, howling as he transformed back into his human form.

"Its probably better if you don't fight," Larry said as he took out handcuffs, and a neutralizing band for the super.

A few seconds later all five guards were detained and locked inside their station, tied together so they couldn't move to send out distress signals.

Mia pressed a button on her utility belt and seconds later Magenta and Zack appeared in a flash of blue light near the helicopter, and the four ran down the stairs to get the leaders in the generator room.

* * *

><p>"Done," Jerry said as he pulled the cable off their external disk from the main computer, after copying the data that they needed. Warren took the external disk and entered some numbers on his teleporter, and soon the hard drive was engulfed in blue light and then vanished, sent off to their Headquarters where it would be safe.<p>

"Let's go,"Warren said and both walked towards the door.

As soon as they reached the door one guard spotted them and yelled into his headset.

"I've got the enemies on the main control bay, send a squad here quickly!" he took out his laser gun and blasted it at both Jerry and Warren, who expertly moved out of the way and poised themselves for attack.

Jerry quickly dodged the laser shots and grabbed the guard's arm, twisting it and then knocking him out with a strong punch. He and Warren ran up the ramp leading to the main deck, where the two other leaders were.

At the entrance to the main deck the guards spotted them and attacked straightaway, protecting their two main leaders.

Jerry took out his own weapons as Warren powered up, with flames running up his arms. The two were separated off as they took down the guards, both trying to reach the leaders. The last glimpse of Jerry that Warren had was of his face transforming to look like one of the bearded leaders. Warren smirked as he ran the opposite way, he knew Jerry would be just fine.

He was running up the stairs towards the main deck, and when he reached the dining hall adjacent to the outdoor deck, he heard a crash and saw the windows explode in a shower of glass. He ducked behind a dining seat but was still scratched at the arms and on the side of his face by the flying debris. When he stood up he was faced with about a dozen men, all with weapons pointed straight at him.

Warren looked at all of them for one good second before he let his flames fly through the air, just as the glass had a few minutes previously.

* * *

><p>"Gabby, Ethan, I'm sending you up now! Find Warren and Jerry at the main deck!" Mia yelled into her comm-link, as she dodged bullets, rays, and different objects. They managed to spot the leader Grant, who was quite surprised at his unwanted guests and was now using his telekinetic powers against them, sending all kinds of objects around the room, ricocheting them against the walls to increase the impact. His guards were thinning out and when he noticed, he raised his arms and the ceiling started to rattle violently. Two steel columns collapsed down on the group, and the walls and ceiling started to crack.<p>

"Get down!" Magenta yelled as a big blast came and the room was demolished in an instant.

Mia managed to shield her friends from most of the debris but they were still down amongst the concrete rubble. Grant had escaped without any of his guards surviving the blast. She spotted Larry to her left and helped him up as Zack supported Magenta, who took a blaster wound to the leg right before the explosion.

"Let's go before the whole roof collapses," Mia said as they made their way up the ramp, headed for the main deck.

They reached the main deck just in time to hear the crashes and shots between the guards and Warren, Jerry, Ethan, and Gabriela, who had arrived just minutes before.

"Zack get Magenta somewhere safe, the helicopter is still up there, fly it to the harbor and we'll take the ship there," Mia commanded and Zack nodded.

She kicked a guard on the chest as he tried to stop them, and she watched the two make their way up the stairs to the top deck. Zack managed to bypass the guards around them by blinding them with his powers, and hitting some of them with his freeze ray.

Mia ran up to the dining room, where most of the fight was, and quickly took down guards by flinging force field disks at them. She spotted a familiar red and black figure and made her way towards him.

"Hey, how's it going?" Warren jokingly asked as the two stood back to back fighting off bullets and rays.

"Oh you know, just the usual, people trying to kill us and stuff, no biggie," Mia replied as they both turned their heads to grin at each other. Warren then threw a fireball over Mia's head to hit a guard who was about to charge them. The guard ran off screaming with his hair on fire.

"Grant has the ring," Warren informed Mia, who was not very surprised. After she kicked a guard over the broken window, she grabbed hold of Warren's left hand, which was not as hot as it should be seeing as he just extinguished his flames.

Squeezing his hand reassuringly, she said, "I'll find him...and the ring."

Warren tightened his grip on her hand as well, but let it go after a moment, "Be careful."

Mia nodded as she jumped through the broken window to reach the main deck faster. Warren on the other hand spotted a group of guards with the other leaders and charged towards them with his remaining team members beside him.

* * *

><p>Mia scanned her eyes around the main deck for Grant. She made her way to the very edge of the ship and finally spotted him. He looked straight at her while he leaned against the railing in a calm manner.<p>

"I never said what a pleasure it was to meet you, you and your friends certainly stirred up this place quite a bit," he said, crossing his arms across his chest casually.

"Theres nowhere else to go Grant," Mia said.

"Quite the contrary," he smirked. "I'm always prepared if you must know."

Mia produced a force field, about to push it towards him but he only grabbed something from beside him, and showcased it to Mia.

"I was very curious when one of my men managed to take this from one of the heroes they encountered the day before yesterday, from their description, it seems like I've found the owner."

Mia narrowed her eyes at him as she looked at her utility belt in his hands, "So what? It's just a utility belt."

Grant laughed, "Indeed. Nevertheless I snooped a little, and here's what I found," he started opening the small pockets and took out its contents. "Nutrient pills and medication, cash, portable weapons, and just when I was getting bored... I found this."

And he held up a small velvet box.

Mia blinked, and Grant's smirk widened.

"This is for a friend of yours I suppose? Or else you'd be wearing it if it was yours," he said.

Mia glared at him and he continued, "Or maybe you stole it?" his smile was so wide that Mia wanted to just rip it off his face.

"If you think that ring can be your bargaining chip you can forget it, I can always buy another ring for my friend no problem," Mia retorted, raising her hand and moving her force field higher up.

Grant looked to his right over the railing and Mia turned her head sharply to see a convoy of speed-boats heading towards the ship. He laughed at Mia.

"Well I've stalled you long enough, my ride's here, goodbye my lady," he then jumped over the railing just as Mia's forcefield was sent straight at him.

Grant missed the forcefield by mere inches, and when it blew off the railing after him, Mia herself jumped off the ship, landing on a crouch inside a speed-boat. The guard driving the boat stepped in front of his boss to defend him, and started to fire his blaster at Mia, who deflected them easily. With a swift kick to the stomach he flew over the side of the boat and splashed down in the water.

Grant shouted at her, "It's too late! There are dozens of my men in here and you can't beat them!"

Mia jumped up a seat and punched him on the face. He raised a hand in reply and sent her flying across the boat. She hit her head at the edge and Grant walked towards her.

He raised an arm over the side of the boat and calmly dropped the velvet box to the water below. When Mia saw his smirk again she felt her blood boil and she charged at him with a yell. He was surprised for a moment but he fought back, and as they were fighting Mia vaguely heard her colleagues voices on her commlink, and the most clear was Larry's voice.

"I'm going overboard Ring Leader!"

Mia sent a punch that sent Grant staggering back and she yelled back on her comm, just as she saw the other speed-boats divert away from the big loading ramp on the side of the ship towards where she was with Grant.

"I need the Boulder Larry!"

"You got it boss."

And the next second she heard a big splash right beside them, and their boat rocked dangerously with the water waves. The water was waist deep for the Boulder, which made it easier for him to swat away the other boats that were coming towards them.

As Grant looked at the Boulder with wide eyes, Mia took her opportunity and encased him in a force field bubble. Knowing that she had to go and help the others, she spotted a freeze ray by the controls and pointed it at Grant.

"This might feel a little cold, but when you get to move again it will be in prison," she told him and he only replied by glaring at her and giving her the finger.

Mia shrugged and froze him in his very rude position. She set herself down by the wheel and steered to her left, where she sent a giant force field against the side of the boat nearest her. The boat stopped, and with the resulting water wave the boat was upturned in a matter of few seconds. As she sped down to help Larry take care of the other boats she noticed that the ship had started to move. She moved away from the propeller as fast as she could and from a distance could see the ship move at a very fast rate, headed towards the docks.

"Ring leader! What's happening with the ship?" she yelled into her comm.

"The guards managed to sneak in to the main controls and now they're trying to crash the ship into the harbour," Warren said in a hurried voice. "We're trying to shut the engines down but they've jammed it somehow."

"I'm dropping the anchor!" came Ethan's voice and a second later Mia watched the heavy anchor as it was dragged through the water.

But as it touched down below, it didn't even slow down the ship. It broke the anchor hold in the process with a big blast of ripping wood, leaving the anchor and the chains behind as the ship continued forward.

"Shit," someone said over the comm, and Mia just kept her eyes on the ship as it moved forwards.

She was startled when she heard the sound of blasters across from her. Just as she was ready to defend herself from the shots she saw the boat across rock violently from side to side. It's inhabitants looked over the side to see what was wrong and soon brown kelp started to creep it's way up the boat, looking like one giant plant monster devouring the boat. The guards started blasting the plants, but it only kept growing even more and enclosing them in a sort of cocoon. The boat was upturned and Mia saw a red, white and blue blur speed past them, and it seemed as if he had something green on his back. The flying objects slowed down and landed on a speedboat just a few meters away from Mia, and she could clearly see the Enforcer dropping off Ivy so she can steer the boat back to the harbor, and he flew away towards the speeding ship, no doubt to stop it from crashing into the docks.

Mia drove her boat towards Layla, and she also spotted the Boulder making his way towards them. All of the enemy boats were finally down.

"Ivy!"

Ivy stopped her boat and looked at Mia apologetically,

"I'm sorry! We saw you and we had to help!" she cried out and Mia only grinned back at her.

"Its okay Layla, thanks for saving our backs," she replied comfortingly. The Boulder made his way towards them, displacing the water around him in large waves.

As he reached the two boats stopped close to each other he greeted Layla in surprise, and thanked her for taking out the other boats with her giant plant monsters, Layla grinned sheepishly in response.

As the Boulder transformed back into Larry and Mia helped him up on her boat, she noticed that one of the waves moving away from them carried with it a floating small dark object. Her eyes widened.

She turned to the two, "I just saw one of the disks that Grant dropped floating over there, I'll swim over to get it so you two can go on ahead back to the harbour, I'll meet you there," she said hastily as she climbed on the edge of the boat, preparing to jump over.

"Wait, Lia!" Layla shouted.

"What disk?" Larry asked in surprise.

Mia jumped towards the water and she resurfaced a second later and looked at her companions, who looked down at her with indignant expressions on their faces.

"Don't worry about me!" she said to them. "I'll be fine! Just go and meet the others!"

Layla and Larry nodded, and turned their boats around just as Mia swam over to where she last saw the velvet box.

* * *

><p>Warren and the others inside the ship felt their sudden slowdown, and immediately looked over the railing at the very head of the ship. What they saw was a costumed hero pushing his weight against the ship whilst flying, and when he looked up at their faces he only grinned apologetically.<p>

Warren looked at his friend The Enforcer and sighed. So much for not needing help.

When the ship was settled in the harbour and all the criminals tied up. They were taken away by the police and the Super Squad, and the leaders put in high security vehicles to be taken into Maxville Prison.

Warren saw the Squad hauling out Grant in his iceblock form from the speed-boat Larry was in, and one of the guys from the squad gestured to him.

He walked over and looked at Grant, and he couldn't help but smirk at his rude hand gesture. He had a feeling he knew to whom that finger was for. Which reminded him, he hadn't seen Mia anywhere.

After defrosting Grant in a few seconds and seeing him neutralized and cuffed, he briskly walked towards where his team was grouped together, plus Ivy and The Enforcer.

"Where's Mia?" he asked Larry quickly, since he was the last person to have fought alongside her in the waters.

Layla and Larry looked at him quickly, and Layla spoke in an urgent tone.

"She said she was going to get one of the disks that Grant dropped in the water, we told her to wait but she went ahead. She said she won't be long."

Warren looked towards the lake and back at his friends,

"I'll just go see if she's found it then," he said calmly then turned to Will and Layla. "Thank you guys, you really saved our backs, but you don't have to wait with us as we clean up, you two go on ahead and relax."

"Yeah Will," Zack clapped him on the back. "Didn't you say you were at the beach? The weather's still nice. If we finish early we might have time to join you over there."

The rest of them nodded and as the couple said their goodbyes and flew off to the south where the beach was located, Warren ran down to the speed-boat Larry had driven.

"Mia's probably searching for the ring, you guys take care of everything here while I help her ok?" he asked and the rest of them nodded, as Jerry and Larry, not having known about the ring, was filled in by the others.

* * *

><p>Warren sped off down the water headed for the spot where the ship was before it went out of control. Scanning out, he couldn't see anything but the harsh waves of the lake and the sun's reflection on the water. He kept going slowly, but the lakeside he was in was quiet, most likely because the police and the hero clean-up squad had just finished rescuing the criminals from their various states in the water. He was beginning to get worried, he wanted to jump off and check under the water, but he wouldn't even know which part of the lake she was in in the first place.<p>

"Mia? Mia come in!" he shouted into his comm-link, but there was no response. Maybe it was broken?

"Where are you Mia?" he muttered to himself as he kept moving.

He kept silent as he strained his hearing to its fullest, trying to ignore the sounds of the waves and focusing on another person's breathing, or any other sound for that matter.

He stopped the boat and killed the engine so he could hear better. Standing up on the side of the boat, he looked all around him and listened for any unusual sounds for a few moments. When nothing came out from his observation, he took off his utility belt and prepared to dive.

Then he heard a sound, a static-like noise, but when he reached for his comm-link and put it up in his ear there was nothing. But he heard the static noise again when he took it off -it was from somewhere else. He looked around to the direction where the noise seemed to have come from and walked across the boat as he prepared to dive on the other side this time.

Then he heard another noise, much clearer than the static noise.

"Yes!" came a joyous shout and Warren looked far out to see a head above the water, moving with the waves, about a hundred meters from where he was. It was definitely Mia.

He started the boat again and headed for her, and she seemed to have noticed him because she started to wave at him vigorously. As he got closer he saw that she was grinning madly, and the hand she was waving at him with was clutching something. He knew it.

"Warren! You won't believe it! Grant threw this over board and I still managed to find it!"

Warren maneuvered the boat just right beside Mia and grinned down at her.

"I knew you'd get it back," he said. "Now come on so we can celebrate."

He leaned over the side as he watched her fling her hand as if throwing a frisbee, and out came two small and flat force field disks. She made them stop adjacent to the side of the boat, and placed them ladder-like so that she could step up easily. She climbed on with ease and grabbed on to Warren's outstretched hand. He pulled her up quickly and embraced her.

"We did it," she said to him, grinning and she held out the damp velvet box. She opened it to reveal the emerald ring, totally unscratched and unharmed.

"That's one hell of a ring," Warren mused and Mia stood on her tiptoes to give him a long kiss, not caring if she was dripping wet and was getting him just as wet.

"You're damn right it is."

**TBC**

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><p><strong>AN. hey guys! long time no see :D , my apologies for the long wait, but here you have it! One more chapter and this short story will be finished :D thanks for the patience and remember:**

**REVIEW PLEASE! they make me oh-so-happy and make me write faster :D**


	5. The Ring and the Wedding

**Chapter 5- The Ring and the Wedding**

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><p>"You're unusually pale," Zack remarked, which prompted Will to look even more nervous.<p>

Magenta rolled her eyes at Zack, "Way to boost up his morale."

Everyone was inside the botanical garden, waiting for Layla to walk through the entrance. Zack and Magenta were sitting beside Will at the benches, making light conversation to keep his nervousness at bay. Ethan was looking at some orchids nearby with Gabriela and Warren and Mia were standing on a small bridge over a koi pond. When Warren and Mia spotted Layla's red hair and green blouse amidst the crowd, they briskly walked towards Will.

"Here she comes Will," Mia grinned while Zack and Magenta stood up.

"Good luck man, we'll be watching you," Warren clapped him on the back.

The four walked away from Will, but after a few steps they positioned themselves behind a thick hedge of roses and some baby trees. Ethan and Gabriela joined them a few moments later, and all of them watched as Will took Layla to the small bridge over the pond where Warren and Mia were previously.

The friends watched as their friend got on one knee and their other friend smiled widely in response. Zack was sensible enough to capture the romantic moment with his SLR camera, which he clicked so many times so as not to miss anything.

They watched as the emerald ring was placed on Layla's once bare ring finger. She then jumped on Will and hugged him tightly.

"This is perfect Will," Layla said to Will, who was grinning madly.

"I love you Layla," he replied and then kissed her, while cheers and wolf-whistles could be heard around them.

* * *

><p><em>3 months later…<em>

"There are two rings this time Stronghold, are you sure you want to give it to me for safekeeping?" Warren asked as Will handed him a bigger velvet box. Inside were his' and Layla's wedding rings.

"Well you've got the others to help you with safekeeping right? I'm sure it'll be fine," Will reassured him.

"That's what you said last time," Warren pointed out, trying not to remember that whole ordeal.

"Hey guys! Ooohhh are those the wedding bands?" Mia walked in the room and spotted the rings in Warren's hands. She opened the box to reveal matching gold bands. They were plain on the outside, but upon further inspection Mia saw Will and Layla's names engraved on the underside, with the date of their wedding.

"They're beautiful!" she exclaimed.

"And Will wants us to keep it again for a while," Warren informed her while Will grinned sheepishly.

"Are you sure Will?" she asked and Will nodded, smiling as he did so.

"It is the best man's job," Will pointed out.

Mia laughed, "He's got you there Warren."

A few moments of silence and then,

"Fine."

The two left Will in his office, and headed towards the elevators. Mia turned to Warren and said lightheartedly,

"This time we're putting these babies in a safe."

"That's probably a good idea."

* * *

><p><em>Yet another three weeks later...<em>

"I do."

"May we have the rings please?"

As everyone in the vicinity watched the wedding band make its way to its permanent home attached to a beautiful emerald ring, Will and Layla's closest friends looked at each other with content and happy smiles on their faces. The dubbed 'Ring Mission' was finally over and they could finally let out sighs of relief.

To them, it wasn't just an ordinary mission; it was an adventure that they soon would not forget. But they did make a pact not to forget that the truth about that mission would still be kept a secret from Layla, the glowing bride.

Now that would be a mission indeed.

**The End.**

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><p><strong>AN. Finally finished! Thank you all for your patience, favourites, alerts, and reviews. I hope you all liked this story and I would gladly accept comments.**

**I will be putting up a new story as a part of my "Mixed Tape" story-verse, which will be a series of one-shots, mostly about Warren and Mia, but also some with their friends like Will and Layla. If you have any suggestions for the one-shots don't hesitate to drop a comment or pm me directly.**

**Thanks again, I had a lot of fun writing The Ring. Hope to see you in my next story! :D**


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